Damn Simulations and Hideous Technology
by Rainbow Composer
Summary: Before the final battle, the team makes one last stop to Gold Saucer. Vincent is less than thrilled, even if he does have a perfectly good reason to keep playing those terrible games... Friendship or slight hints of slash, depending on how you look at it.


This idea came to me after spending HOURS at Gold Saucer when I would rather be anywhere else. I'm so sick of those games, I swear...

First time writing with FFVII characters. Yay! (=

Also, about the end...check out the shout-out to the version of Cloud that shows up in Kingdom Hearts. XD

Again, reviews are greatly appreciated! 3

-insert stereotypical disclaimer you've seen a thousand time before-

* * *

It was only a matter of days before the world of Gaia faced its destruction. The would-be saviors had been running themselves ragged, desperately searching for something that could be done to prevent the fall of Meteor. Every minute wasted brought the danger closer to home. And now, finally, they had been given a lead. They had hope again, hope that Cloud hadn't allowed himself to feel in a long time. They could put an end to this. They could save the Planet. They could stop Sephiroth.

…Which was exactly why the eight of them now found themselves at Gold Saucer. Yuffie was so excited to hear that the amusement park had been reopened that she had thrown an absolute fit about making sure they went back at least one more time before the final battle. It wasn't long before she had convinced the others that it would be fun as well. None of them wanted to say what everyone was thinking; this might be the last time they were all able to go together. If something were to happen at the Northern Crater…

But this wasn't the time for that. Now was the time to play arcade games and go on rides and forget about what the future held for them! Even Cloud was having a good time. The only one who hadn't been seen much was Vincent, but nobody held it against him. The ex-Turk was more than a little anti-social, and Gold Saucer was full of people trying to escape the grim reality outside.

After grabbing dinner at the theme park café (expensive as hell and sure to give them heart attacks from the grease, but oh so good), the group of comrades turned friends bid each other goodnight. Upon returning to the room they shared at the haunted mansion themed hotel, Cloud was surprised to find that Vincent wasn't here, either. He eyed the iron maiden in the corner suspiciously for a moment before shaking his head. Even with all of the strange, dark vibes rolling off him, Vincent wasn't _that_ weird. With a small shrug, Cloud moved into the bathroom without giving it much thought. Wherever he was, he'd be back. Even if he had found trouble somewhere, he had already proven that he could take care of himself.

He had to have stood under the hot water of the shower for hours, even after he had finished washing up. The whole room was filled with steam, to the point he could hardly see anything when he finally shut the water off and stepped back out. Drying himself off, he glanced at his reflection in the mirror and had to laugh. Even soaking wet, there was no stopping his hair from spiking. Once dressed, he stepped back into the bedroom. Sure enough, there was a dark figure standing at the window. "Vincent," Cloud greeted with a nod of his head, even if the other had his back to him. For a moment there was no response. Then Vincent turned suddenly, and there was an obviously irritated expression on what part of his face was visible.

"I cannot fathom what you see in a place like this," he said lowly, crimson eyes narrowing. For the briefest moment Cloud felt a flicker of fear, quickly reminding himself that this was Vincent. No matter how intimidating and at times downright scary the guy might be, Cloud would trust him with his life. He _had_, as a matter of fact, on numerous occasions.

Awkwardly scratching the back of his neck, Cloud muttered, "I…take it you aren't having much fun, huh?" Vincent continued to silently stare at him. The younger sighed. "Look, I know. This isn't the time to be having fun. I know we've got a job to do. I know we shouldn't have stopped here at all. But…" he trailed off, trying to think of the words to convey what he was thinking.

"I know," Vincent said softly, and looking at him Cloud was surprised to see that his expression had softened. He wondered if any of the others would have noticed the slight change in his features, or if anyone else even looked at him closely enough to be able to tell the difference. "I understand, and I don't blame you."

"Then what's wrong?" Cloud mentally cringed as soon as he had spoken. Of all the people who you did not want to ask that question…

Vincent made no move to reply. Not entirely sure if that was for the best or not, Cloud turned away from him towards the bed he had claimed as his own. He only made it halfway when Vincent grudgingly spoke.

"If you must know…it's those _fucking_ arcade games."

This caused the blonde's eyes to widen, twisting around to stare at his friend without any attempt to cover his shock. That was not a word he had expected to hear out of him, ever. That was the kind of language people like Barret and Cid used…and of course, himself, if the situation called for it. Granted, he didn't know what "people like Vincent" even meant, much less if there actually _was_ such a thing…

Keeping his head bowed as if the things he said were damaging to his dignity, Vincent turned his back to Cloud once more. "How do you stand it, Cloud? You and the others…you seem to enjoy playing with those accursed machines. How could one possibly find entertainment in such hideous technology?"

"You mean…you…played…?" Cloud was having a hard time forcing himself not to grin as realization set in, along with a mental image of Vincent sulking around Wonder Square, trying out the games.

"I was with you when we stole that submarine," Vincent continued in a distasteful tone, arms folded tightly across his chest. "I helped you man the controls, did I not? Hmph… I don't need a damn simulation telling me that I supposedly failed the same imaginary mission five times in a row."

By this point, Cloud had his hand pressed against his mouth, trying his hardest not to let his roommate see or hear him snickering. Gaining enough control of himself that he trusted his ability to speak, he said, "Yeah, you were great at the real thing. You didn't have to keep playing, you know."

"No," the gunner replied in a dark growl, "I suppose I could have played that godforsaken snowboarding game instead. Apparently, the real thing wasn't quite hellish enough for some people. I never thought I'd find something that would make me miss the infernal basement of Nibelheim's mansion. Dio must think it's funny to give his customers suicidal thoughts." Raising his head, he looked straight into Cloud's eyes as he whispered, "As if that is not what Mog House is for."

That was the last straw. The mental image of Vincent, glaring at the screen in concentration as he fed Mog the Moogle kupo nuts and urged him to fly for his girlfriend, was just too much. With Vincent's eyes still on him, Cloud burst out laughing. He couldn't remember when the last time he had genuinely laughed was, but he was more than willing to do so now at the ex-Turk's expense. To his great surprise, a soft laugh echoed his from the other side of the room.

"I apologize. That might have been a bit overdramatic."

No need to hide his smile now, though he saw with some satisfaction that Vincent's face had lost some of its stoicism as well. He wasn't smiling, really. Not with his mouth. But his eyes seemed brighter somehow, and not in the usual demons-coming-out-to-play sort of way. That was a first. Cloud couldn't help but wonder how far he could stretch the seemingly good mood of someone who claimed the inability to feel. "What else did you do, then?" he asked interestedly, taking a seat on his bed. "You can't have been in Wonder Square all day or we would have run into you." And oh, how much fun that would have been!

"I got out of there was soon as possible," Vincent assured him, taking slow strides as he crossed the room to sit across from Cloud on his own bed. "As soon as I had enough GP for the Battle Square, I was gone."

"So you spent most of your day off shooting things?" the blonde teased, though he wouldn't have expected anything else, now that he thought about it. "You know…we had more GP than we ended up using. We would have shared with you so you didn't have to play a bunch of games you hated."

Vincent fell silent again, simply watching him with his unreadable expression back in place. Then, ever so slowly, he reached his hand into his cape. For a split second, Cloud wondered if he was going for his gun, but when his hand reappeared he was holding a small brown bag instead. Seeing the confused look on the swordsman's face, Vincent held the object out to him.

"I wanted to surprise you," he said quietly. More curious now than before, Cloud reached out to take the item from him. Almost immediately he let out a gasp, feeling the power pulsating from within the confines of the sack. The longer he held it, the stronger the feeling grew until he could feel that power rushing through his entire body. It was an almost shocking energizing sensation, leaving him breathless. Somewhere during all of this, a word flitted through his head; almost like a whisper meant to be felt instead of heard.

_ Omnislash…_

And then it was over and he was left empty handed, panting slightly as he looked up at Vincent with wide eyes. "W-what was…?"

"Omnislash," he repeated the word from Cloud's head. "You're incredibly skilled, whether you acknowledge it or not. I figured you could put it to good use."

"So…" Cloud said slowly, piecing things together. "You spent the day…playing games you hate, just so you could wrack up enough points to get something…for me." It wasn't a question. It didn't have to be.

"Consider it a thank you," Vincent barely whispered. Seeing the look Cloud gave him, he added in an only slightly louder voice, "You were the one to wake me from the nightmares."

"Just to pull you into another one," Cloud reminded him with a small sigh, lowering his gaze to the floor.

"As nightmarish as this reality may be," the older's deep voice rolled over him, and Cloud barely suppressed a shiver as a hand gently touched his shoulder, "I'm glad I met you, Cloud. For the first time in decades, there is a glimmer of light in the darkness. Let us do our damnedest not to lose sight of it."

Mako eyes met crimson. In the reflection of both, the same mutually unspoken emotion hung between them. As a nervous, tentative smile pulled at the corners of Vincent's lips, Cloud realized that words weren't necessary anyway. Nor were they accurate. Not for the first time, he was immeasurably glad to have solved the secret of the Shinra mansion and found that locked-away coffin. A life in which he had never met this tragically beautiful man in front of him wasn't one he liked to consider.


End file.
